Physical Description

Just from looking at Polaber, it quickly becomes apparent how inhospitable it is, if you could not read the multiple warning signs orbiting the planet already. Several large dark grey spikes jut out of the frozen ocean that encases the entirety of the planet with tens of thousands more spikes hidden below the surface. Gigantic cracks run through the surface, with abandoned mining stations scattered around them and covered in snow. Deep inside those cracks lie the remains of wactite society before the species's extinction.

The first hazard with exploring Polaber is the extreme cold. Species that are not naturally able to withstand such temperatures will die of hypothermia within an hour without specially made suits. Most ships also struggle to launch as their batteries or fuel may freeze. The second hazard comes in not disturbing the planet as it may explode over large areas if a wactite corpse is exposed to air or melts. The third hazard comes in the lack of any people or services on the planet. After the disaster that killed the entirety of the expeditions on Polaber, further landing on the planet has been heavily advised against and the possession of wactite corpses or shell-spike material has been outlawed in most sectors.

History

Polaber is quite far from most other planets, being the only planet in its solar system, and thus has never seen the touch of any other species besides its resident wactite for the majority of its existence. Originally, Polaber was quite warm and was covered in a deep tropical ocean, flourishing with sea-life. The wactite with their biological terraforming created huge clusters of shell-spikes upon shell-spikes in towering spires and gigantic reefs. This had the inadvertent effect of building up an incredibly thick atmosphere with the gasses created as a byproduct of wactite decay, which quickly led to a global ice age, killing the entirety of the species and freezing many alive.

Once it was discovered, exploratory expeditions and mining operations on Polaber became quite popular until they hit a pocket of wactite corpses and were all tragically destroyed in gigantic explosions. Now, it illegal to take wactite corpses from the planet and several warning signs have been set up in orbit to deter landings on the planet.

Locations

Imposit Chasm: The largest crack in the frozen ocean covering Polaber formed by a mining accident. Although most of the mining equipment has been reduced to scrap and buried by snow, several reefs formed by the wactite have been exposed, with many possible treasures or artifacts lying inside.

Fel Chasm: A smaller crack in the frozen ocean covering Polaber formed from explosions triggered by the aftershock of mining in Imposit Chasm. The crack is not quite deep enough to reach major wactite structures, however the remains of ruined mining equipment, lodging, and ships alongside frozen corpses can be found littered about inside the chasm and may prove the best chance of escaping should one become unfortunate enough to get stranded on Polaber.

Hifit Spire: The tallest spire on Polaber, once a sanctuary of the dominant wactite religion. Many of the middle floors have been looted by explorers, but the frozen floors below and the highest floors still may contain religious offerings, sculptures, and other valuable treasures. Of course, the corpses of wactite seeking help from their ultimate demise also litter the floors, providing a gruesome danger.

Special

Explosive: Polaber is littered with the frozen corpses of the wactite species. The slightest seismic activity, such as that of a large ship taking off, or high enough temperatures to melt a frozen wactite, has a high likelihood of setting off a gigantic chain of explosions followed by the emission of toxic gas, fluids, and shell shrapnel as new wactite shell-spikes are formed. You are probably dead or your ship is destroyed at this point, so do anything you can to avoid this.

Trivia

• While very few come to visit the planet itself, the warning signs orbiting the planet have become a minor attraction with all sorts of colorful graffiti covering them.

• Desperate and wanted by the police, criminals have tried to make base on this planet occasionally, but none have succeeded as far as anyone knows.

• Researchers estimate that with three or four more chain explosions, Polaber will gain rings made of ice and spike debris.